The great New Hope? Certainly if pre-release lightsaber-rattling is anything to go by. An MMO that looks as exciting as it is immersive. Factions based on Republic and Sith, space combat and scores of different planets are promised, with the focus on a "cinematic" feel, while maintaining a colossal range of options, storylines and interactions – love interests included. Gemma Clarke

No room in the madhouse? Why not relocate the criminally insane downtown? This is the ominous backdrop to Arkham City, the bigger, badder and even darker follow-up to Batman: Arkham Asylum, last year's Bafta Game of the Year. Still not convinced? It will have lashings of extra Catwoman. Serge Pennings

To deliver more tools, more tricks, and more levels designed by more absurdly talented … Well, everybody. Sackboy returns in the New Year to taunt non-PS3 owners with his exclusive sociability. It is unusual for something so cute to be so cool, or so praiseworthy to be so playable. Perfect. SP

Sequel to the most inventive, disarmingly involving title of recent times sees both player and artificial intelligence GLaDOS reawakened in an Aperture Science facility that has fallen into disrepair. Including two-player co-op, this mixture of puzzles and plot cannot come soon enough. Developers claim there will be no cake. Which may be a lie. Giles Richards

The third outing for RPG-shooter Deus Ex is set 25 years before the original, where biomechanical augmentations precede the nanotech central to the original. Branching plot lines based on player choice mix with cyberpunk and renaissance themes underscored by a sense of ambiguity and conspiracy that will be maintained until the final moments, insists game director Jean-Francois Dugas. GR

Hugely anticipated prequel to Ocarina of Time, which sees Link living among the clouds of Skyloft before the titular Skyward Sword leads him to adventure on the land below. Utilising the MotionPlus controller for precise attacks, and complex object-and-character interactions in puzzles, we're also promised a new Beetle gizmo for scouting areas by air and collecting items. Felix Atkin

Fingers crossed, after 13 years in development hell, 2011 should finally see the return of the dook – ready to rip off alien heads and "shit down their necks". A standard but terrific fun shooter of its day, these bons mots and the mix of cartoonish ultra-violence and dark humour are long overdue a comeback. Toby Moses

Total War has rightly become a dominant force in the strategy genre, with jaw-dropping visuals backed by absorbingly in-depth gameplay, and Shogun 2 offers a return to the series' roots in feudal 16th-century Japan. Promising up to 56,000 troops in a single battle, and a choice of nine factions, armchair warlords should flex their mouse fingers now. TM

Santa Monica's thatgamecompany approaches games very differently from other developers, and its latest venture is no exception, promising a new kind of online experience. The focus is on gesture-based communication rather than conflict between players as they explore a vast and ethereally beautiful desert landscape. Chris Schilling

From the publishing house responsible for the mighty Grand Theft Auto, LA Noire is a crime thriller set in the underworld of 1940s Los Angeles. Unsurprisingly drawing on postwar film noir for inspiration in both content and style, this murder-mystery adventure promises much. If Rockstar delivers it will be an absolute standout. Will Freeman

A port of an obscure Japanese arcade release, Deathsmiles is the first full boxed game from cult developer Cave to make it to the UK, delivering a frenzied dose of 2D shoot 'em up action that fell out of favour in the west too long ago. Its eerie setting will delight fans of Tim Burton films. WF